Rights against Exploitation — MCQs

All questions with answers and explanations

Read the full set here, or use the practice card above to test yourself one question at a time.

1. What does Article 23(1) of the Constitution prohibit?

   • Untouchability
   • Traffic in human beings and beggar and other similar forms of forced labour (correct answer)
   • Employment of children in factories
   • Discrimination on grounds of religion

   Explanation. Article 23(1) prohibits traffic in human beings, beggar, and other similar forms of forced labour.

2. Against whom is the right under Article 23 enforceable?

   • Only the State
   • Only Parliament
   • Both the State and private individuals (correct answer)
   • Only foreign nationals

   Explanation. Unlike most Fundamental Rights, Article 23 is enforceable against private individuals as well as the State.

3. What does Article 23(2) permit the State to do?

   • Impose compulsory service for public purposes without discrimination (correct answer)
   • Ban all religious institutions
   • Reserve seats in legislatures
   • Suspend fundamental rights during peacetime

   Explanation. Article 23(2) allows the State to impose compulsory service for public purposes, provided it does not discriminate on grounds only of religion, race, caste or class.

4. In People's Union for Democratic Rights v. Union of India (1982), what did the Supreme Court hold about payment below the minimum wage?

   • It is always lawful if the worker consents
   • It amounts to forced labour under Article 23 (correct answer)
   • It only violates Article 14
   • It is permitted for construction work

   Explanation. The Court held that paying less than minimum wage amounts to 'force' within the meaning of Article 23, making such labour 'forced labour'.

5. Which term in Article 23 refers to labour exacted without payment?

   • Traffic
   • Beggar (correct answer)
   • Forced labour
   • Bonded labour

   Explanation. 'Beggar' refers to work exacted by a person in power without payment.

6. Which legislation was enacted by Parliament to give effect to Article 23 in the context of bonded labour?

   • The Minimum Wages Act, 1948
   • The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 (correct answer)
   • The Factories Act, 1948
   • The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970

   Explanation. The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 was enacted to abolish the bonded labour system and give effect to Article 23.

7. Which Article of the Constitution was PUDR's petition brought under, to enforce the rights of construction workers under Article 23?

   • Article 32 (correct answer)
   • Article 226 only
   • Article 136
   • Article 141

   Explanation. PUDR invoked the Supreme Court's original writ jurisdiction under Article 32 to enforce the fundamental right under Article 23.

8. 'Traffic in human beings' under Article 23 is understood to include which of the following?

   • Buying and selling of human beings, including the sale of women and children and forced prostitution (correct answer)
   • Interstate migration for employment
   • Voluntary enlistment in the armed forces
   • Adoption of children through legal process

   Explanation. Traffic in human beings means dealing in people as if they were goods. It includes the sale of women and children and forced prostitution.

9. Article 24 prohibits the employment of children below what age in a factory, mine, or hazardous employment?

   • 12 years
   • 14 years (correct answer)
   • 16 years
   • 18 years

   Explanation. Article 24 prohibits employing any child below the age of 14 years in any factory, mine, or other hazardous employment.

10. M.C. Mehta v. State of Tamil Nadu (1996) ordered:

    • Schooling for children taken out of work (correct answer)
    • Closure of all factories in the State
    • The abolition of Article 24
    • No relief at all

    Explanation. M.C. Mehta v. State of Tamil Nadu (1996) ordered schooling for children taken out of work, well before Article 21A was inserted.

11. Anil, aged thirteen, is sent by his parents to a small unlicensed firecracker unit and handles explosive chemicals. His parents agreed and he is willing. Does Article 24 apply?

    • No, because his parents consented
    • Yes, because he is below fourteen and the work is hazardous (correct answer)
    • No, because he is willing
    • Yes, but only if he is paid below the minimum wage

    Explanation. Article 24 still applies, because he is below fourteen and the work is hazardous. The parents' consent does not save the employer.

12. Which Directive Principles say that the tender age of children must not be abused?

    • Articles 39(e) and 39(f) (correct answer)
    • Articles 44 and 48
    • Articles 40 and 43
    • Article 46 only

    Explanation. Articles 39(e) and (f) direct the State's policy so that the tender age of children is not abused and children are protected against exploitation.

13. Is employment of children in non-hazardous work, such as helping in a family enterprise after school hours, barred by Article 24?

    • Yes, all child work is barred by Article 24
    • No, Article 24 specifically targets factories, mines, and hazardous employment (correct answer)
    • Only if the child is below 6 years
    • Only in urban areas

    Explanation. Article 24's textual scope is limited to factories, mines, and other hazardous employment, not all forms of child work.

14. Which of these is a hazardous occupation where employment of children is barred, as identified in child-labour jurisprudence?

    • Fireworks and matchstick manufacturing (correct answer)
    • School teaching assistance
    • Library work
    • Office data entry for adults only

    Explanation. A firecracker unit handling explosive chemicals is hazardous employment, which Article 24 bars for a child below fourteen.

15. Which constitutional amendment inserted Article 21A, closely linked to the child-welfare objectives underlying Article 24?

    • 42nd Amendment, 1976
    • 44th Amendment, 1978
    • 86th Amendment, 2002 (correct answer)
    • 73rd Amendment, 1992

    Explanation. The 86th Amendment, 2002 inserted Article 21A, guaranteeing free and compulsory education to children aged 6 to 14, reinforcing Article 24's child-protective purpose.

16. Under the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, as amended in 2016, an adolescent aged fourteen to eighteen is barred from:

    • All work of any kind
    • Hazardous occupations and processes (correct answer)
    • Attending school
    • Working with a parent's consent

    Explanation. The Act bars employment of a child below fourteen in any occupation or process. A young person of fourteen to eighteen is an adolescent, barred only from hazardous occupations and processes.